Orange and Barclaycard launch NFC payments in Britain

The first proper roll-out of near field communication
(NFC) payments, which transforms your mobile phone into a debit
card, has finally hit Britain. Mobile network Orange and credit
card firm Barclaycard have teamed up to bring their Quick Tap system to shops across the country.

Right now, it seems like the sort of thing you'll be buying
with the digital wallet is either a croissant or a Big Mac. Among
the 50,000 shops that now feature the Quick Tap terminals, it's
primarily cafes and restaurants. Pret a Manger, EAT, Little Chef,
Subway and McDonalds are some of the first to sign up.

Then again, you wouldn't get much use out of the system in
HMV anyway as the phone only lets you spend £15 or less at any one
time. You might be able to rid your pockets of loose change, but
you won't be leaving the house without a credit card just yet.

Another restriction is the number of phones you can use:
just one. A Quick Tap-enabled version of the Samsung Tocco Lite goes on sale in the UK today on pay as you
go or contract. Orange says, in a press release, that "more
handsets [are] expected to follow from a selection of leading
manufacturers".

If you do buy the Tocco phone, and you are a Barclaycard,
Barclays debit or Orange Credit Card user, you can transfer up to
£100 to the handset's Quick Tap app to make your payments. You
don't have to key in a code or PIN to spend, just tapping your
phone against the terminal is enough to pay for your coffee.

The app features electronic statements that details all your Quick
Tap purchases, so you can keep an eye on your spending and manage
your finances on the go.

O2 offered its own take on NFC payments in a 2008 trial when
it let customers pay for London Underground tickets with a phone. The company has said
it will launch a full-on mobile payment service in 2011.Samsung, Lloyds TSB and Visa are hoping that the tourism boom
of the Olympics will help launch their NFC plans. The three firms will
issue special phones and terminals to London in 2012 to push the
technology.

In the world of phone manufacturers, Google has been pushing
towards getting near field communication chips into Android
smartphones since 2010. Apple has been lagging behind, but it's
heavily rumoured that the iPhone 5 will
feature digital wallet technology.